By Simon Coveney TD, Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment.
Today, offshore wind energy generated from the Arklow Bank Wind Park makes up approximately 25MW of Ireland’s total electricity production.
When it was developed in the early 2000s it was the world’s first erection of wind turbines rated over 3MW.
Our ambitions have shifted dramatically since then. By 2030, we aim to deliver 5GW of offshore wind with a further 2GW to be in development for non-grid use such as Green Hydrogen. By 2050, we aim to deliver 37GW of offshore wind which is approximately 6 times our current peak electricity demand.
Irish territorial waters cover 450,000km² in area. So, a country that is relatively small in terms of land area is amongst the larger states in Europe on an Exclusive Economic Zone basis.
The space off our coasts is vast and suitable to build offshore wind farms at scale. Allied to that, our seas are recognised as being home to some of the best wind resources, in terms of speed and consistency, in the world.
The Irish Government published a White Paper on Enterprise in late 2022 which stressed the importance of decoupling economic growth from carbon emissions. This is the future. The Government recognises that decarbonisation is no longer only an environmental necessity, but an economic one. Decarbonising our existing industries while enabling growth and innovation in green sectors is now our priority.
The need and opportunity of capturing Ireland’s offshore wind energy potential will be central not only in meeting our climate targets, but in transforming economic development in Ireland over the coming decades. Effectively, this is a new industrial revolution and Ireland intends to be in the vanguard.
So, make no mistake: this is a huge opportunity. We will revitalise coastal communities where abundant, clean, green offshore wind energy comes onshore.
We will attract major new industries to Ireland who will be seeking an abundant supply of renewable energy – in addition to our traditional strengths of a highly skilled, English-speaking workforce with a globally connected economy and a proud member of the European Union. We will also build a cohort of strong Irish-owned firms who will use this energy resource.
As Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, I am determined that we must position Ireland to capture all of the value we can on our decarbonisation journey. In particular, this ideology aligns with harnessing the potential for offshore wind generation and the industries that are best suited to come alongside it.
With this objective in mind, my Department has recently begun developing a National Industrial Strategy for Offshore Wind, which we aim to publish in the first half of 2024. This Strategy will ensure that Ireland maximises the economic opportunity from both a supply chain and industrial demand perspective associated with our offshore wind targets.
My Department is consulting across Government and has also opened a constructive dialogue with the offshore wind energy industry – including supply chain, developers and other key players – whose input will be crucial to reaching our offshore wind energy targets. As the Department responsible for Enterprise, close engagement with industry will be at the heart of our strategy development.
My Department, alongside our enterprise agencies, Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland, is actively working to capture the wider investment, employment, and export opportunities for Ireland arising from the development of offshore wind at scale.
The Gael Offshore Network, supported by Enterprise Ireland, currently comprises over 85 companies who provide a range of technical supply chain services for the offshore wind industry. We will continue to work with this Network in strengthening its collective capability and assisting in reaching our ambitious offshore wind targets.
Building an industry of this scale also requires a complementary Research, Development and Innovation ecosystem which can aid collaboration between large multinational operators, SMEs and the research community. Ireland has already proven it can cater for such initiatives in areas like Manufacturing 4.0. We will now consider how best we can create the appropriate conditions for innovation as it applies to offshore wind.
In the not too distant future, Ireland can be in the position where we are producing more energy than we need. This will open up new industrial
opportunities that may be best served through the strategic co-location of Large Energy Users where wind energy comes onshore.
In all of this, we will reflect the Government’s commitment to balanced regional development, whereby collaboration on offshore wind energy – and its benefits – cascades from national policy, through regional spatial and economic strategies, right down to local economic development plans.
We have much work to do – and many questions to answer on how best to approach this generational opportunity. We are committed to working with all our partners to address these issues together.
*The reNEWS Ireland 2023 special report was published today. Subscribe today to read in-depth news and analysis of the country’s offshore and onshore wind sectors.